2019 PGA Tour Schedule Includes Big Changes

The 2019 PGA Tour schedule was finally released today, rolled out with a press conference from Tour headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and as many have speculated, the new schedule – which once again spans the 2018 and 2019 calendar years – has some pretty big changes, including a reduced playoff schedule; a beefed up Florida Swing; two new Midwest stops; and a pair of current events moving to the fall’s wrap-around portion of the schedule.

FedExCup signage on No. 9 during the third round of the 2018 Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, CT. Credit: Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

2019 PGA TOUR SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS

Florida Swing: With the PGA Championship moving to May, the PGA Tour’s flagship event, The Players Championship, returns to a March date, giving the Tour a four-event Florida Swing once again: The Honda, Bay Hill, the PLAYERS, and Innisbrook.

New Midwest Stretch: The Quicken Loans National moves from D.C. to Detroit with a new name – the Rocket Mortgage Classic. The new Michigan event will bat lead-off in what will be a three-event stretch through America’s midWest leading into the Open Championship. The new 3M Open in Minnesota will follow, with the long-running John Deere Classic (Silvis, Illinois) assuming the anchor position the week before the Open.

New Fall Dates: The Houston Open and the Greenbrier event will be moved to the wrap-around season in the fall.

WGC Change: The World Golf Championship-Bridgestone Invitational, contested at Firestone in Akron, Ohio, moves to Memphis, essentially merging the Bridgestone with the FedEx St Jude Classic. The new tournament name will be titled the WGC-FedEx St Jude Invitational, which will be contested the week following the Open Championship.

The FedExCup Playoffs: The PGA Tour’s season-ending playoffs will be reduced to three (3) tournaments (from four): top 125 (Northern Trust), top 70 (BMW Championship) and top 30 (Tour Championship). The odd event out is the TPC Boston stop – sort of. The Northern Trust will reportedly move between New York and Boston, with next year Liberty National in Jersey City, New Jersey playing host, before heading to TPC Boston in 2020. The playoffs will also conclude one month earlier – before Labor Day, to avoid competing with the NFL and college football.

Still Unclear: A change to the playoff format will be announced later this year, while the start of the fall schedule, along with tournaments and dates, are still to be determined.

“We are extremely pleased with the way the schedule has come together, particularly with the number of changes that were involved and the strength of the partnerships required to achieve this new look,” said PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.

“It’s been our stated objective for several years to create better sequencing of our tournaments that golf fans around the world can engage in from start to finish. And by concluding at the end of August, the FedExCup Playoffs no longer have the challenge of sharing the stage with college and professional football.

“This will enhance the visibility of the FedExCup Playoffs and overall fan engagement with the PGA TOUR and the game as a whole.”